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FPE Marks 22nd Anniversary with Launch of New Knowledge Products, Partnerships

Posted on January 22, 2014

 

 

The Foundation for the Philippine Environment (FPE) commemorated its 22nd anniversary last January 15, 2014 with a special event held at the Philippine Social Science Council in Diliman, Quezon City.

The program showcased the debut of the latest addition to the Foundation’s selection of knowledge products, the “RSEA Guidebook: Managing the Conduct of Resource and Socio-Economic Assessments,” an output derived from FPE’s collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The Guidebook was put together to provide government agencies, NGOs and POs, and academic institutions with a reliable reference tool that can facilitate resource and socio-economic assessments of conservation sites — from the research stage all the way to the communication of results to key decision-makers and the stakeholders involved in the management of the sites. The publication draws from FPE and USAID’s experience in the implementation of the Up-Scaling Forest Restoration Efforts in Key Biodiversity Areas (KBA) project in eight sites across the country.

Packaged with the Guidebook are a supplementary booklet and poster that summarize, in compact and visually engaging easy-reference formats, assessments of the state of natural resources and socio-economic profiles found within the eight KBAs. The supplements provide technical information on these sites, based upon which appropriate conservation interventions may be made.

In addition to the launch of the RSEA Guidebook, FPE also held the symbolic turnover of several other recently published knowledge products, namely, the sixteenth volume of its Kalikasan (Kaalamang Likas Yaman) Series of case studies; the Proceedings of FPE’s 2013 National RAC (Regional Advisory Committee) and Partners Meeting; the “Protecting the Watershed Reserves Through Legal Empowerment” paralegal process and training toolkit; and the Lapat Educational Modules. The latter two publications were developed in partnership with Balay Alternative Legal Advocates for Development in Mindanaw, Inc. (BALAOD Mindanaw) and in support of Tipon ti Umili Para iti Panagsaluad ti Nakaparsuan (TIPON), respectively.

In its 22 years of existence, FPE, now the country’s largest civil society-oriented grant facility for the environmental agenda, has contributed to a multitude of biodiversity conservation and sustainable development efforts in collaboration with local governments, civil society organizations, the private sector, and other international conservation institutions. To date, the Foundation has funded more than 1,400 projects nationwide, supporting more than 65 priority conservation sites and collaborating with over 1,000 local non-profit organizations across Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

FPE has also been active on the research front throughout its history, having played integral roles in staging environmental conservation and development-oriented conferences, as well as producing award-winning publications and resource materials. The Foundation has also performed its own research, providing baseline data in key conservation sites, and is constantly involved in addressing relevant and emerging environmental and sustainable development topics of concern.

Below are more photos from the anniversary event.